1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a liquid container having plural porous members for storing a liquid in its internal section and, more particularly, to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing an ink storage container for use in an ink jet recording apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, ink storage containers for storing ink used in ink jet recording apparatuses are constructed so that a single ink storage foam member having a volume at least approximately equal to the capacity of an ink storage section is disposed in the container body as a high-molecular elastic porous member for storing a liquid, as disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 87242/1988 and Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 692/1993.
Such an elastic porous member can stably supply ink if the amount of pores and the compression of the porous member are set to suitable values, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 38816/1993. Accordingly, it is necessary to insert such an elastic porous member into this kind of container with the greatest possible care.
As a method for providing an elastic porous material in an ink storage container, a method such as that disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 357046/1992 is known in which an elastic porous material is compressed to a desired size by being pressed with a jig and is thereafter inserted in a container by a piston. A method such as that disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 463/1993 is also known in which a material is compressed along a guide and is thereafter inserted.
The above-described packing method is effective in inserting a single porous member in a container. However, it is difficult to insert a plurality of porous members into an ink storage section while uniformly maintaining the porous members in a compressed state in the case of an arrangement such as that disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 245562/1985 or 34353/1990 wherein the ink storage is formed by plural porous members.
To improve the ink use efficiency of ink stored in the ink storage section of an ink container, the ink container can be constructed with an ink supply port for supplying ink to an ink outlet formed so as to project into the ink container particularly deforming the porous material incorporated therein. In such a case, since the porous material is deformed in the vicinity of the ink supply port, it is difficult to obtain a desired pressure gradient in a peripheral region where the porous material and the inner wall of the container contact each other.
Moreover, in the case of a container which is formed into a complicated shape, e.g., an L-shaped or stepped configuration, it is difficult to insert a porous material uniformly into the container without leaving a gap between the container and the porous material even if the material is formed into a shape similar to that of the container. In such a situation, the ink use efficiency is reduced and an unnecessary space is formed in the container.
Further, in the case of containers used for storing ink having different surface tensions or containers having different ink storage chamber capacities, a plurality of elastic porous materials having various pore rates or container-conforming shapes must be used for packing the container.